Scenedesmus

Scenedesmus,Scenedesmus (highly magnified).Robert W. Hoshaw/EB Inc.genus of colonial green algae with 4, 8, or 16 cells arranged in a row. A common component of freshwater plankton, Scenedesmus is used in experimental work on problems of pollution and photosynthesis. In sewage purification processes, it provides oxygen for the bacterial breakdown of organic matter and thereby helps to destroy other harmful substances. Reproduction is by nonmotile spores called autospores.